#defyhatenow in the Media

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Since the outbreak of COVID-19, #defyhatenow has been actively engaged in the fight against the pandemic on many fronts across its countries of operations. With an increase in fake news and misinformation about COVID-19, #defyhatenow is working to counter this misinformation and make credible information accessible to the public. These efforts have led to an engagement with several international and national news outlets and other organisations that are working to provide factual and positive discourse about the pandemic. These features highlight the work that #defyhatenow has been doing to counter misinformation related to COVID-19. They are resourceful to governments, media and individuals looking to understand the manifestation and implications of misinformation during a global crisis like the COVID-19. The following are some of #defyhatenow’s media engagements related to COVID-19. 

  • Remotivi featured #defyhatenow as one of the organisations in the forefront of fighting against misinformation related to COVID-19 through the 211CHECK platform as well as the #COVID19SS in South Sudan.
  • Nelson Kwaje, #defyhatenow’s director of programs, talked to the BBC World Service on fighting COVID-19 related fake news. 
  • #defyhatenow was included in an Aljazeera feature of the work volunteers and activists in Kenya are doing to stamp out fake news during the COVID-19 crisis. 
  • Based on the 211CHECK work on combating the spread of misinformation on COVID-19, #defyhatenow was also featured by the UN Youth Envoy among the youth at the forefront of fighting COVID-19. 
  • #defyhatenow South Sudan team, led by Kim Otor and Lucy Kiden, was hosted by Radio Miraya, a UN Radio Station in Juba, to talk about Fake News and Hate Speech related to COVID-19 in South Sudan. 

In addition to the media engagements above, #defyhatenow has been represented in a series of webinars focusing on misinformation and fake news surrounding COVID-19.  Some notable webinars include:

  •  Global Black Youth (GBY) webinar on tackling misinformation and digital rights during the  COVID-19 Pandemic.
  • UNICEF Global webinar on understanding recent trends in digital civic engagement by adolescents and young people.
  • The African Development Bank webinar on COVID-19 awareness (Innovative tech and social media to catalyze CSO’s contribution amid COVID-19).